The invention relates to optical switches and more particularly to multipole optical fiber switches.
The development of optical communications systems requires various devices for interconnecting, coupling and switching signals between optical sources and receptors such as optical fibers. Such switches could be used, for example, for switching different attenuators or delays into a communications line, for connecting sources with different wavelengths to a communications line to test a wavelength multiplexer and for many other applications.
Such optical fiber switches should provide for low loss in each position, high isolation between ports, a relatively fast switching time and a reasonably low cost. However, a problem with coupling light directly between optical fibers is that it must be done with great precision. As is indicated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,033,669, this requires the machining of parts to high tolerances.